


and now; a date

by furyspook



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe, Blind Date, F/M
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2013-08-18
Updated: 2013-08-18
Packaged: 2017-12-23 21:56:28
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,933
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/931513
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/furyspook/pseuds/furyspook
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>As easily explained as it can be? Jean's ex's friend agreed to set *his* friend's sister up on a date. Jean just hopes she isn't some kind of troll-woman.</p>
            </blockquote>





	and now; a date

The entire situation was complicated, and Jean was still trying to work out the details as he adjusted his tie. What had happened was that one of Jean's ex's friends made an agreement with a friend of his. He'd agreed to find his foster sister a date, and being the little devil Eren was, he'd gone to Armin to inquire how single Jean still was. Armin and Jean were still close, and Armin was a great guy, but that Eren really got on Jean's nerves. Jean was half-sure his date would look and act like a damn bog monster. Armin had assured him that she was beautiful, and had more manners than he did. 

Jean grimaced at his reflection in the mirror. His date wasn't for three hours. He didn't even know her name. Didn't even know how Eren got them a reservation at... Whatever that restaurant was called. Eren didn't seem like the type of person with connections to somewhere so French-sounding. He pulled the loop of his tie loose again. Maybe it was too much. His shirt was ironed like a military uniform; five times and with care to press the corners. Jean pulled the tie taut again. Without the tie the shirt looked too relaxed.

Who the fuck was he trying to impress? _'Too relaxed' my ass_ , Jean though, tearing the tie off of himself. His eyes darted to the clock. Two hours, fifty-five minutes. He heaved a sigh. 

"Maybe she'll be into nervous."

. . .

Exactly two hours and fifty-five minutes later, Jean arrived at the restaurant that jerk chose for him. Eren was nowhere to be seen, in a possible attempt to save his sorry skin. A blind date. Jean wished that he'd untangled his tongue more quickly and at least gotten a name out of Armin. Nah, he was in on it too. Damn him. 

He glanced up to the sign above the door. It wasn't a large building, it probably stretched further back. He gave reading the name a try, but the combination of the swirly font and foreign language turned him off it immediately. Jean adjusted his tie, swearing internally because he looked like a total tightass and he should've just left it at home. He pushed the glass door open and was greeted by a welcome blast of air conditioning. Until the door opened he'd felt as if he was stuffed into an oven. 

A podium stood off to the left of the door, a man in a waistcoat and a bow tie eyed him as one would when they needed something, _anything_ to keep them occupied. Jean walked to the podium and on impulse leaned over the edge to check the book for his name. There wasn't even a book, much to his surprise. Instead there was a clipboard, on the clipboard, looseleaf paper. The man leaned down, shoving his face between Jean and what must be their secret un-fancy best kept secret. 

"Can I help you?" The man's voice was monotone, and he ended his sentence softly. 

"You can. I've a reservation. It should be under 'Kirschtein', but you can check under 'Yeager', too." 

"Yeager's friend, huh? I think the brat mentioned a pal a few nights ago. Let me check my book." He didn't so much as glance down at his 'book', instead turning away and stepping down. Jean was almost terrified to find he wasn't close to eye-level anymore. He took off across the floor, weaving between tables. He stopped by a small, two-chair table in the back corner, one out of direct light. He gave Jean a look of 'are you an idiot?', and Jean took off towards the table himself. 

"Thanks." Jean said, only half meaning it. 

"So, you didn't go pick her up? Chivalrous." The man took the chair opposite him, keeping his eyes on the door in case he needed to dash back over and seat someone more competent. 

Jean narrowed his eyes, wondering what kind of customer service this was. High-end, no doubt about it. 

"I'm going to take it you don't even know who she is. That's like him." Jean pulled a face. "You're the third one he's sent out here." 

Jean would have responded with disbelief-- did Eren even have that many friends? --but the man was half way across the room before he had the chance. 

At least he didn't need to hear about the past romantic failures of his table.

The interruption was caused by a small blonde woman in a black dress. She didn't seem to be making conversation, instead offering one-word responses to the man at the podium. He directed her to Jean's table, and she dipped her head. She walked to the table and took her seat, already pulled out from the table. 

Jean took a minute to look her over, and could tell she was doing the same for him. Her light hair framed her face nicely, and her blue eyes looked almost uncaring. He could tell she was nervous, though, by the way she kept readjusting her hold on her handbag. Jean held his hand out to her over the table. "Hi." Hi. Good going genius. Suave. "I'm Jean." She stared blankly at his hand for a moment, and then received it with her own. 

"My name's Annie." She was making every effort to speak evenly, and Jean thought she succeeded. While he couldn't describe her voice-- the first-date jitters that'd disappeared over the last three hours reappeared all at once and he waited to pull his hand back, before his hands started to sweat --he knew that it was nice. 

"It's nice to meet you." Jean said. She nodded her agreement, and took her hand back under the table. She didn't look away from his face, and his anxiety skyrocketed in seconds. 

The silence continued for a couple of minutes, Jean's polite smile morphing into something deranged as he dug around his empty head for something to say. Annie adjusted her shoulder strap. She'd turned her attention to the tablecloth, tugging at it. He bit back a comment about how inconvenient it must be to need to keep fixing the dress.

"So." Jean sucked on his own tongue, feeling his mouth go dry. "So, how are you?" 

"Fine." Annie spoke more quietly, raising her hand to tuck a stray hair behind her ear. It fell forwards again just as soon, and he made a quick and immemorable thought about how cute that action was. "How are you?"

_You heard the lady, how are you Kirschtein?_ "I'm okay." He replied. "A little nervous. I mean, it's been a while since I've taken someone on a date." He laughed over his shoulder, to the wall. 

"I've never been on a date." Annie said after a little bit. Jean turned back to her and their eyes met again. Somehow less awkwardly. "So don't screw it up." His eyes widened, and Annie's as well. "Oh, I-" She stopped herself from saying anything else. 

Jean barked out a laugh. She furrowed her brow. "As if I could have a bad date." Jean boasted, and then he froze. He remembered something from all his past passes at Eren's sister. Girls didn't like haughty attitudes. Jean was pleasently surprised when Annie started laughing herself. Quietly at first, but it grew louder as if that statement was the funniest thing she had ever heard. "Ha... Haha. Uh, did I say something funny?" 

"Well I just think your face is hilarious," She reigned in her laughter and recomposed herself. She pushed her strap back up her shoulder and her hair behind her ear. "You look like you just ran over someone's dog." 

Jean smiled sheepishly. "Is that a good thing?" At least she was laughing. 

"Consider the fact that my brother looks like he's backed up all day every day. Any deviation is great." Annie picked up her water, looking away to focus on it. Jean nodded, feeling himself loosen up, getting the urge to unknot his tie. Of course, that would kill the point of it and wouldn't look serious enough to be sitting across from Annie's nice dress. 

"I understand that you two have just unfrozen and are enjoying your clapping like seals, but there's only so long I can go without asking you to pick something to jam down your throats." And wasn't his tone pleasant, as always. The man looked down at Jean, probably in an attempt to be less polite to Eren's aquaintence and just slightly more polite to the lady. Jean frowned and lifted his menu off of the table at his silent insistence. Jean had been under the impression he stood behind the podium for a living. "I'm getting old and grey." Tossing a look across the table at Annie, Jean was happy to see that she was looking down at her own menu with scorn. She could burn a hole through the table with a look like that. He flopped the menu open and swallowed hard. He couldn't understand anything. 

With Annie as his witness, he was going to die here. 

. . .

Annie and Jean spent a couple of hours eating food they didn't recognize (or enjoy, really. They were both simple people.) and trading comments ("I think mine's moving,", "Does this taste like shrimp to you? It has that small lobsterish shape."). They were both falling into a comfortable atmosphere when their waitor informed them that the restaurant was closing. As it happened, his name was Levi, and he didn't even have permission to watch the podium. Jean thought as he walked out the door that his date had gone over better than he'd expected, and Annie was a better blind date than he'd ever dared to hope for. Out on the sidewalk, waiting for Annie's brother to pull up to take her home, they exchanged numbers. "On the offchance you want to repeat this, strange, strange ritual." Jean said. 

"If I want to laugh as you choke on small bones again, I'll give you a call." Annie replied. It'd been an accident. He didn't know the... Whatever he'd ordered even had bones. "I had fun." 

She wasn't smiling, rather looking curiously at Jean's face. He found her cheeks looked pinker than they had a moment ago. "I did too." 

They stood next to each other in comfortable silence until a silver car pulled up to the curb. The window rolled down and a large blond head of hair poked out from behind the wheel. "Annie-y!" Annie turned her head away from the car and balled her hand into a fist. "Come on, don't gimme that! How was your date?" Jean noted that her brother was shouting rather loudly. "This him? Thought he'd be better looking." 

The newcomer turned his head around at a hand on his shoulder, and a quiet "Please stop, Reiner," and then sighed and slouched against the driver's seat. 

"Yeah, sure." Reiner looked back to Annie. "So, get in. No funny business, Mr. Date." Annie's annoyance was almost heating the air beside them. She gave Jean a jab in the side with her elbow. 

"He's always like this. Tell me you're not bothered." 

"Not, really?" Jean replied, and Annie nodded to him before getting into the car. She waved through the glass and Reiner honked loudly twice as he pulled away from the curb. Jean clenched his jaw. Oh yeah, that was bothersome. 

Jean leaned back against the stone wall of the restaurant and loosened his tie. As much as it almost physically pained him to admit it, he'd have to thank Eren sometime. 

**Author's Note:**

> I! Have no idea what just happened but at two am i started thinking that this ship is really damn cute! and i wanted to write for it! and i think i got annie a little ooc but im going to toss that off as poor tired writing/being an alternate universe! also sorry if it's long and boring i can either write short vague things or really long overdetailed things. Y nY im v sorry. i also didnt spellcheck or reread or anything. again v sorry if i messed something up lemme know


End file.
